First Look: Steve's Snappin' Dogs opening tomorrow at DIA

It's been almost two years since Steve and Linda Ballas first decided to try to put a second Steve's Snappin' Dogs at Denver International Airport, just over a year since they got the go-ahead from DIA to work with Keith Montoya, the local partner with LS Travel Retail, on a store on Concourse B. And now the end -- or make that the beginning -- is in sight: After a gas-line problem pushed the opening back from today, Steve's Snappin' Dogs will open tomorrow. "Linda and I are ecstatic," Steve Ballas says. And so should travelers be when they land at Steve's.

Before opening, the Steve's crew used an electric fryer to cook up some samples. "We probably served about 300 United and DIA people," says Ballas. "They're all excited. it's reasonably priced, with something for everybody. They're excited that there are so many local flavors."

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Those flavors include ten of the specialty dogs that have created so many fans of the original Steve's on Colfax, five of the burgers and sandwiches, as well as a Cobb salad, a veggie salad, a turkey wrap and a veggie wrap. The DIA Steve's will also have the fried green beans, skin-on French fries, onion rings and sweet potato tots that are popular sides. A "Steve's on the Go" area will offer quick service, with breakfast sandwiches and breakfast burritos available all day. The menu is a "little bit limited," says Ballas, "but as we go on, we may bring on other items."

There are no shakes or malts, for example, but there will be fresh lemonade and limeade. The DIA Steve's also has a beer and wine license, and will have a dozen local craft beers on tap -- including the Snappin' Ale created by the Bull & Bush -- as well as some local wines.

And the decor even has the flavor of the original. Ballas was there when the sign was finally turned on, and "I actually welled up," he says. "To see your name on a wall at the fifth busiest airport in the country...."

Steve's will be open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily starting tomorrow. Keep reading for more photographs from Brandon Marshall to get a real taste of the place.

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